Discrimination

News about Discrimination, including commentary and archival articles published in The New York Times.

Chronology of Coverage

Mar. 2, 2015

Justice Department prepares to release highly critical report accusing Ferguson, Mo, police department of discriminatory policing culture that created deep racial animosity in years leading up to shooting death of Michael Brown; report finds that city disproportionately ticketed and arrested African Americans, using fines to balance its budget; findngs will force officials to either negotiate settlement or face civil rights charges. MORE

Feb. 26, 2015

Supreme Court hears argument exploring religious sterotypes, employment discrimination and symbolism of Muslim head scarf, issuing from 2008 incident at Abercrombie & Fitch clothing store in Tulsa, Okla; Samantha Elauf was not hired by store because of her scarf, and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued on her behalf. MORE

Feb. 25, 2015

New York City Police Commissioner William J Bratton, speaking at Greater Allen AME Church of New York in Jamaica, Queens, as part of Black History Month event, addresses issue of racism in law enforcement; says while deeply-rooted problems persist, they are not systemic; notes 'vile' history of racial injustice and says that biased individuals must be purged from police force. MORE

Feb. 24, 2015

Op-Ed article by law Prof Ian Ayres highlights research from Australian economists Redzo Mujcic and Paul Frijters finding white people receive special privileges, particularly when no one else is around; notes that research is first to focus on discretionary accommodations, and underscores importance of understanding that discrimination can manifest itself in form of benefits to particular favored groups. MORE

Feb. 23, 2015

High-profile harassment lawsuit going to trial has huge implications for gender issues in Silicon Valley; Ellen Pao, former employee from venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, claims she was discriminated against by firm after affair with married colleague; guilty verdict will be portrayed as indictment of high-tech industry, while dismissal could bolster rationale that gender issues are overplayed. MORE

Feb. 19, 2015

Concerns about racism among British soccer fans are brought to fore after amateur video documents group of Chelsea fans intimidating black man in Paris subway. MORE

Feb. 13, 2015

Michael Kimmelman Critic's Notebook assesses plan to join Paris with its inner suburbs, shift that will more than triple city's official population to nearly seven million people; observes change could extend a greater sense of belonging to millions of immigrant families who live in poverty in city's outskirts, challenging the metropolis, and also France, to reckon with its legacy of racism. MORE

Feb. 13, 2015

Advocates for deaf file federal lawsuits against Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, alleging both universities failed to provide closed captioning in their online lectures, courses, podcasts and other educational materials; hold that lapses violated antidiscrimination laws protecting the deaf. MORE

Feb. 11, 2015

Kansas Gov Sam Brownback rescinds former Gov Kathleen Sebelius's 2007 order banning discrimination against gays and lesbians in state hiring and employment; charges that Sebelius acted unilaterally in passing measure. MORE

Feb. 9, 2015

The number dropped to 12 percent, down 3 percentage points from the year before. MORE

Feb. 9, 2015

Fifteen residents of St Louis region file two suits against suburbs of Ferguson and Jennings that challenge constitutionality of what they say is rampant ticketing and jailing from tickets going unpaid; suits both seek class-action status, and allege system of ticketing is designed to pad cities' coffers and disproportionately affects blacks and the poor. MORE

Feb. 9, 2015

William C Rhoden Sports of The Times column recalls that recently deceased University of North Carolina basketball coach Dean Smith was tireless civil rights advocate and was truly concerned with players' education and moral development. MORE

Feb. 7, 2015

Jennifer Finney Boylan Op-Ed article maintains Roman Catholic Church's narrow and discriminatory views are responsible for driving away many faithful; notes church has turned out many in need of acceptance, like gays, lesbians and transgender people, or in need of help, such as addicts; urges Pope Francis to reach out to such people during scheduled visit to New York and offers hope that church may eventually return its faithful. MORE

Feb. 6, 2015

Members of University of Iowa women’s field hockey team file complaint with federal Education Department claiming that firing of coach Tracey Griesbaum was part of pattern of discrimination against female coaches. MORE

Feb. 4, 2015

Arbitrator certifies class of thousands of women to proceed to trial in gender discrimination case brought against Sterling Jewlers; company, which owns 12 chains in the United States, has been accused of discriminatory pay and promotion practices. MORE

Feb. 4, 2015

Black Ice: The Val James Story, autobiography by trailblazing hockey player Val James, traces the racial abuse he faced from fans and teammates as the NHL's first American-born black player; James says writing process helped him put the ugliness of the past behind him. MORE

Feb. 3, 2015

Institutions known as continuing care retirement communities, which house senior citizens requiring varying levels of care, have been known to implement exclusionary policies mandating different facilities or activities for residents with different needs; policies have led to complaints from residents who are told that they cannot eat with friends or play bingo. MORE

Jan. 30, 2015

Idaho's House State Affairs Committee votes to block bill that would have included protections for gay and lesbian people in state's Human Rights Act. MORE

Jan. 28, 2015

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints leaders, in effort to find middle ground, denounce discrimination against gays, while calling to protect rights of people whose religious beliefs oppose homosexuality and same-sex marriage; announcement comes as Utah is considering nondiscrimination law. MORE

Jan. 25, 2015

The Upshot; Tyler Cowen Economic View column examines research on the relationship between economics and social tolerance, noting limitations of widely-held view that open economies lead to open minds about race and sexual orientation; observes that economic forces can only account for so much, and that a society's qualitative aspects are also strongly at work. MORE

Jan. 25, 2015

Women are extremely underrepresented in Hollywood, both on screen and behind camera; major film studios are force behind institutional discrimination, especially against female directors; growing number of people and organizations in movie industry are working to rectify imbalance. MORE

Jan. 25, 2015

Manohla Dargis interviews women in film industry who offer their thoughts on sexism and discrimination they face in Hollywood. MORE

Jan. 23, 2015

About 15 African-American employees of McDonald's in Virginia who contend they were fired because of their race sue company, accusing it of not taking responsibility for discrimination and harassment they say they received. MORE

Jan. 22, 2015

Supreme Court justices are disrupted during housing discrimination case by protesters on fifth anniversary of Citizens United ruling, which permits unlimited political spending by unions and corporations; case targeted by protesters centers on scope of Fair Housing Act. MORE

Jan. 22, 2015

Editorial contends Supreme Court, in considering Fair Housing Act case over tax credits for low-income housing in Dallas, should uphold appellate courts interpretation of law; says by doing so it shows bigger appreciation of stubborn and long-term effects of racial discrimination. MORE

Jan. 21, 2015

French Prime Min Manuel Valls says nation has deep gulf akin to 'apartheid' that is leaving minorities on fringe of society; comments are seen as response to Paris terrorist attacks and isolation of immigrant population. MORE

Jan. 20, 2015

Camille O Cosby has been staunchest supporter of her husband Bill Cosby in face of accusations of sexual abuse by multiple women; frames her defense of him in terms of media's unfair representation of African-Americans, subject she has been vocal about for many years. MORE

Jan. 19, 2015

Several start-up banks are using data science, or big data, rather than just credit scores when deciding which loans to make; are hoping that thousands of data points, from buying habits to social connections to how application forms are filled out, will help determine good credit risks; method is still unproven and banks may inadvertently break anti-discrimination laws. MORE

Jan. 14, 2015

Supreme Court seems to be seeking moderate position in case that will decide how far Equal Employment Opportunity Commission must go to settle cases out of court before filing lawsuits; Commission has argued courts should have almost no role in second-guessing its efforts to settle cases. MORE

Jan. 14, 2015

Gerald L Storch, chief executive of Saks Fifth Avenue parent company Hudson Bay, denies accusations that former employee was harassed and subsequently dismissed over her transgender identity; Leyth O Jamal had filed suit contending that Saks managers had pressured her to act, dress and identify as a man, despite being aware of her identity. MORE

Jan. 11, 2015

Nicholas Kristof Op-Ed column suggests that those who bring up black-on-black violence in debate about police killings of young black men are missing the point, namely that abuse of police power can destabilize society; expresses sympathy with New York City police officers concerns about their safety, but criticizes effective work stoppage that has been taking place; contends that racial bias in police community has been well-documented. MORE

Jan. 10, 2015

Retiring column; older workers who are considering retirement may include in their considerations factors like life expectancy when deciding at what age they should stop working; other considerations like how technology is changing some workplaces and possibility of age discrimination in hiring can also affect the decision. MORE

Jan. 9, 2015

Veterans Wayne R Cubs and John Robbins file separate lawsuits against town of Rutherford, NJ, alleging discrimination and favoritism in passing them over for police force; town's municipal government is accused of being rife with nepotism, and of history of discrimination against veterans. MORE

Jan. 6, 2015

Local prosecutors and human rights ombudsman near Champlan, France, will undertake antidiscrimination inquiry into Champlan Mayor Christian Leclerc, who is accused of refusing to allow burial of 2-month-old Roma infant in municipal cemetery; Leclerc denies incident. MORE

Jan. 6, 2015

Interview with Prof Jennifer L Eberhardt, associate professor of psychology at Stanford University, who has won 2014 MacArthur 'genius' grant for her research into effect of unconscious ideas about race on workings of the criminal justice system. MORE

Jan. 5, 2015

Editorial supports ACLU suit against the Ferguson, Mo, school board, which includes only one African-American despite fact that three-quarters of district's students are black; criticizes 'at large' voting system that has long been used as a tool to reduce minority voting power; notes city's black population has suffered a long history of discrimination before death of black teenager Michael Brown brought it to national attention. MORE

Jan. 5, 2015

Charles M Blow Op-Ed column examines racial undertones in case of Julia Shields, white woman who was taken into custody 'without incident' after going on shooting spree in Chattanooga, Tenn; argues case illustrates double standard in light of recent police shootings of unarmed black men in far less dangerous situations, illustrating an unequal application of lethal force. MORE

Jan. 4, 2015

Federal Bureau of Investigation agents who have been put into aggressive internal surveillance program claim it is impediment to their assignments and careers; program, called Post-Adjudication Risk Management plan, or PARM, was established after 9/11 to monitor new hires with access to classified information, many of them of Middle Eastern or Asian descent; critics say agents are being discriminated against and have little legal recourse to exit program. MORE

Jan. 4, 2015

The Upshot; Sendhil Mullainathan Economic View column examines extensive research into unconscious discrimination, in light of deaths of unarmed African-Americans across nation; holds that such discrimination is the most common in contemporary America, and perhaps represents a more insidious threat than outright bigotry. MORE

Dec. 28, 2014

Warner Bros has hired Michelle MacLaren to direct its Wonder Woman movie, becoming first studio to tap female director for major superhero project; news offers further evidence that female directors are inching closer to closing gender gap, but big disparities remain, particularly in Hollywood and in action genre (Series: The Director Gap). MORE

Dec. 27, 2014

Joe Nocera Op-Ed column submits that unconscious bias lies behind continued dominance of while, male workers and entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley; challenges notion, advanced by some, that Silicone Valley is meritocracy, noting low percentages of black and female workers there; says it is common for people to want to be surrounded by others like themselves, and that this impulse is at work in tech industry. MORE

Dec. 23, 2014

Obama administration will investigate health insurance plans to determine if they are discriminatory against people with AIDS, mental illness or other costly chronic conditions, and against people of certain age; Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will focus on companies that participate in federal insurance marketplace; administration issues rules requiring insurers to improve accuracy of publications listing their doctors and hospitals. MORE

Dec. 23, 2014

Lawsuit filed by advocacy group Consumer Watchdog against health insurer Aetna claims that it discriminated against people with HIV by requiring patients to obtain drugs only from its mail-order policy, violating health care reform law; many insurers have placed restrictions on specific drugs or increased out-of-pocket costs for drugs in response to rising costs; industry claims that mail-order pharmacies keep costs and premiums down. MORE

Dec. 16, 2014

Colorado court battle over refusal by bakery owner Jack Phillips to make cake for same-sex wedding is one of several disputes nationwide, spurred by local governments taking increasingly hard line on religious vendors refusing to serve gay couples; cases are largely being fought, and some say fueled, by legal advocacy organizations the American Civil Liberties Union, which supports same-sex marriage, and Alliance Defending Freedom, which opposes it. MORE

Dec. 10, 2014

Jim Dwyer About New York column cites experiences of seminary students Shawn Torres, who is black, and Benjamin Perry, who is white, who were both arrested while protesting grand jury decision in Eric Garner case; says what happened to both men exemplifies how blacks and whites are treated very differently by police. MORE

Dec. 7, 2014

Women at Work column by Prof Adam Grant and Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook, contends American culture's strong gender stereotypes extend beyond image to performance and lead many to believe men are more competent than women; highlights research that shows learning about ubiquity of stereotypes only makes stereotyping worse, unless people are encouraged to correct their biases. MORE

Dec. 6, 2014

High-profile deaths of black people at hands of police officers, and nationwide protests those deaths have spurred, expose sharp differences about race relations among family and friends around the country; both black and white people describe being surprised and upset to learn about opinions and stereotypes held by those close to them. MORE

Dec. 6, 2014

Op-Ed article by Prof Jason Sokol contends that Northeast region of United States has complicated racial history, like the South, and that understanding this is necessary to confronting painful racial moment following death of Eric Garner on Staten Island; asserts that only by coming to terms with North's mottled past can country move forward. MORE

Dec. 6, 2014

Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli faces five-match ban for using anti-semitic and racist language in an Instagram post. MORE

March 3, 2015, Tuesday

A Justice Department report will accuse the police in Ferguson, Mo., of making discriminatory traffic stops of African-Americans that created racial animosity leading up to an officer’s shooting of a black teenager, law enforcement officials said.

A vigorous argument before the Supreme Court explored religious stereotypes, employment discrimination and the symbolism of the Muslim head scarf, all arising from an encounter at a clothing store in Tulsa, Okla.